Is It Worth It?
by magical-irish-pixie-faerie
Summary: Extra credit for Potions? What could go wrong? Malfoy? Well, I'll have to put up with him. I can do that, can't I? Can't I? DH, pre HBP.
1. Chapter 1

Hello!This is my first fanfic that I've posted! So, you know, the usuall, don't be mean, review nicely et cetera! It's a Draco/Hermione fic, but it'll probably take me ages to get to that. I'm not that good at keeping writing stories, I start stories & never finish them, so I decided to post this one so I would have a reason to finish it, even if it's rubbish (highly possible!) I'll try to keep writing, but I won't be able to promise a chapter every Thursday morning at 11:53 a.m. (I don't know how some people do that!) Well, even if you think this is really bad, review and say so. (in a nice way!)

Yours, etc., (My English teacher actually says that's the proper way to end a formal letter, I think it just sounds rude, like you don't really care...yours bla bla...)

Oh, I almost forgot...  
**Disclaimer: **Not one iota of Harry Potter belongs to me, everything is the deserved property of JKRowling, who I admire greatly. If I even had a million billionth of the talent she has I'd have too much! I do, however, own a new phone complete with Johnny Depp wallpaper and it goes "Haha, you're really weird!" when I get a text message!Yay-ness!

* * *

**Is it worth it?**

"Granger, bring these pepper-up potions up to Madame Pomphre, while the rest of the class cleans up."

Hermione jumped out of her seat immediately, "Yes sir, of course Professor Snape."

She grabbed the bottles of potions that the sixth year class had just made, most of them by Hermione, and ran from the classroom.

"Well," said Snape after a while, and Harry was sure he heard Snape mumble 'now that she's gone'. "If any of you require some extra credit, well, those who are capable, I need two assistants to help me brew a potion, it has to be started in full-moonlight and made outdoors. I will need two people to research this potion, and to make it. I will be checking up on them regularly. To apply for this position, which will grant you a better grade and house points, simply write a five foot essay on the properties and uses of the 'pepper-up' potion, complete with a sample, made by you, of course, and a report on the procedure before and following said uses, with equal attention on _all _stages, to be handed in on Friday."

"Simply? Where did he learn his English?" muttered Harry.

"Friday? But today's Tuesday! No way!" he exclaimed, "How does he expect us to do that? He's such a -"

The bell rang and cut off the end of Ron's sentence. Hermione ran into the room just as the others were leaving, in time to grab her things. While she was there picking up quills that fell from her bag, she heard Snape call Malfoy up to his desk.

"I take it you want to do this assignment, Draco."

"Of course, sir."

"Well, there is no need for you to apply, I know you are more than skilled enough, I will just be looking for one more assistant."

"Thank you, sir."

"I will give you the details on Friday, good bye."

"Good bye, sir."

Draco made for the door, but he spotted Hermione under the desk looking for a quill.

"On the floor, where you belong, eh Mudblood?"

"Draco," warned Snape un-enthusiastically, "Such language is not tolerated at this school." He glanced at him with a look that plainly said 'I wish it was'.

"Yes, sir." Malfoy left, taking care to kick a quill under some shelves.

"Granger, what are you doing under the table, one would think you were eavesdropping."

"Oh, no sir, I dropped some quills, I'm just picking them up."

"Hmmm, well, hurry up!"

"Yessir!"

She grabbed another quill and ran out of the classroom.

"Granger," sneered Malfoy, who was leaning against the corridor wall, "You didn't get all of your quills, I think there was one under the shelf that you missed! Why didn't you get that one?"

"Oh, and do exactly what you wanted me to? Yeah right! I wouldn't lower myself for you."

"Well, there wouldn't be much lowering involved."

Hermione pulled out her wand, "I'm warning you Malfoy, one more word -"

"Right outside a classroom, Granger? I don't think so!" But never the less he started to back away.

* * *

"Oh, I hate him, I hate him, I hate him!" cried Hermione when she sat down next to Harry and Ron in the Gryffindor common room.

"Who? What happened?" asked Ron, concerned.

"That damn Malfoy!" sighed Hermione and she told them about the encounter.

"And while I was in the classroom Snape was saying something about an assignment, do you know what he means?"

"The extra credit one, I expect." said Harry.

"What?" cried Hermione, "What extra credit assignment?"

"Oh yea, you weren't there." said Harry, and he told Hermione about the potion Snape wanted two assistants for, and the essay involved, he left out the mumble he thought he heard from Snape - he didn't want to upset her.

"And that's for Friday, is it? Well," Hermione continued without waiting for an answer, "I'd better get started! I must finish my charms homework first, oh, wait, I finished that already, oops!"

She giggled in a flustered way. And promptly fainted.

* * *

The End, or is it? (Well, of course it isn't! That would make no sense!)

* * *

Thank you very, very, very, VERY! much to Galadryal who beta-ed this fic!(you have to review now Galadryal!) And who told me to actually post it, if it wasn't for her I wouldn't have! (maybe I shouldn't have!I'll leave that up to the reviewers!) 

Anyway, to the 'Submit Review' box with you!


	2. Chapter 2

I did a very stupid thing this week, instead of writing whenever I had a chance, I was checking if I had reviews, which was silly really, because I already knew I had one review, which I got around 3 seconds after I posted this story (thanks zan182!), so I had one reader who wanted another chapter so I should have been doing that, getting another chapter ready! Instead I was being greedy, I got one review, but, like all who get a taste of success, I wanted _more_! So, while I was being greedy, I may have lost the one reader I have: (Galadral, you don't count because I _made_ you read it!hehe, kidding, you count, so that's a grant total of two readers!)

Edit: I _did_ forget the **disclaimer** this time!

I own nothing...well, nothing Harry Potter related! Actually, I got all my Harry Potter stuff together a few weeks ago to take a picture (it was for a competition) and it turns out I own quite a lot Harry Potter related! But, you know, I'm not JKRowling! Woe is me!

* * *

Hermione woke up a few hours later, she was lying down and her bed was facing the window, she noticed that it was dark outside. _I know that window _she thought, w_here am I?_ She tried to put two and two together but she couldn't think straight. She heard movement next to her, and she tried to turn around, but she moved too fast. 

"Ow, my head!" she had a splitting headache.

"Hermione, are you okay?" A familiar but concerned voice drifted to her ear, and with a painful jolt her focus sharpened and she could think straight.

"Ron, what am I doing in the hospital wing? Ron? Where are you?" She turned around in her bed but she couldn't see him anywhere.

"We're here." she heard Harry whisper, but she still couldn't see them. "We're under the invisibility cloak, we stayed here all afternoon but Madame Pomfrey made us leave at 7 o'clock. Well, you know Madame Pomfrey, we couldn't exactly argue with her, so we left, but we came back in as soon as she went into her office, we've been here since."

Hermione grinned to herself, no matter how well she knew Harry and Ron she still couldn't understand why they were scared of Madame Pomfrey.

Well, I appreciate your concern and everything, but that doesn't explain why I'm hear, the last thing I remember was you telling me about an extra credit assignment. Was I hexed or something?"

"No," answered Ron, "you just fell, fainted. It was weird. We took you here and Madame Pomfrey, I dunno, did her stuff, and she gave you sleeping potion. She said something about stress but she said she'd wait to tell us what's wrong until you woke up. But don't worry," he added hastily, "I don't think it's anything serious."

"Yeah," said Harry, "And at one point she left, mumbling something about seeing Dumbledore, and pressure on the students, overworking. It sounds to me like you're stressed out."

"Don't be silly, Harry!" said Hermione.

There was a sound from Madame Pomfrey's office.

'Well, whatever the reason, you _are_ in the Hospital Wing, so you'd better get some sleep.' said Ron, and he and Harry disappeared under the cloak.

'You're just saying that because you're afraid that Madame Pomfrey will catch you!' said Hermione.

'Shhh..' came Ron and Harry's voices from beside her bed.

'Oh fine! I'm going to sleep. Scare-dy cats!' mocked Hermione.

* * *

Hermione woke to the sound of Madame Pomfrey bustling about in the Hospital Wing. She sat up and saw Harry and Ron sitting next to her bed. 

Madame Pomfrey walked over to her.

'These two have been here all morning.' she said, jerking her head in Harry and Ron's direction. 'So, how are you feeling?'

'Very well thank you. In fact, I don't even know why I'm here - there's nothing wrong with me.'

'Of course there isn't, but we couldn't exactly have students fainting throughout the school and not take care of them, could we? No, of course not. You're perfectly alright, just stressed -'

'Stressed!' said Hermione, 'but I follow a well thought out study plan, I plan every day with the greatest care, nothing stressful happens to me!'

'Yes, you might think so, but your body was overworked, so it just shut down. Actually, yours is probably the worst case of stress I've ever seen in a student. Now, I will have to insist that you go easier on yourself, perhaps schedule some time in your study plan every evening to _relax_?'

'Well, I could start knitting again...'

'Perfect! Do that every evening and do stop putting so much pressure on yourself. I understand how much studies you have now that you've started your N.E.W.T. cycle, but remember, an hour of relaxing takes less time than a night in the Hospital Wing! Now go on, it's just coming on to 8 in the morning, I'm sure you have some things to do.'

'Thank you.'

* * *

End chapter... 

That's it. No, I'm not kidding, that's it! The end of a horrible chapter. I would like to point out that I _hate_ this chapter. What happened is, when I was writing the first chapter I wrote 'She giggled in a flustered way.' and then, out of nowhere, completely unplanned ' And promptly fainted.' popped into my head. I liked the sound of it, and it was a nice way to end the chapter, but there is no story to it. I have a kind of outline of my story in my head and there was never a Hospital Wing element to it. I would like to warn anyone now who is reading this **Hermione fainting means absolutely **_**nothing.**_** There is no plot to it, it's just bad writing!** I know if I were reading this story I would think 'hmm, maybe this will be very important later on' but it's not! I can't emphasize that anymore! I meant to write around a paragraph in the Hospital Wing, it turned into a chapter. It's a pointless chapter and, as I said before, I hate it!

Yeah, whatever...

(review if you like, but I already know it's bad, no point telling me that, instead try to tell me how to improve maybe, or tell me to give up writing all together, no, don't do that actually, that's mean!)

_Edit:_I just realised that I forgot to thank my reviewers! I'm going to reload this chapter especially! Thanks to:

zan189 for being my first reviewer ever! And for being so so kind! I hope I still have you as a reader even though I took so long!  
Galadryal for reviewing and beta-ing! & being a nice person in general!  
lord of all evil for restoring my faith in my fanfic! I didn't get reviews for ages, and then you reviewed, so thanks!


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